The ruling on one who mistakenly kills a cat he believes is harmful
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Question:
A farmer from al-Suwayd, from the village of al-Kawz, says: I intended to slaughter a harmful cat, but I discovered that it was not the harmful one. What is the ruling of the Shari'ah regarding me, may Allah have mercy on you?
Answer:
If you killed it because you believed it was harmful, for example, by taking the food of the chickens or pigeons, or by soiling the bedding, and this was your belief, then you owe nothing if it becomes clear to you that you were mistaken in your belief.
As for if it is not harmful, it is not permissible for you to kill it; rather, it is obligatory for you to refrain from killing it, because it is one of the roaming animals. You must treat it well with food and drink, and whatever Allah has made easy, and you must not kill it, nor hit it either.
However, if it harms you in the food of the chickens, for example, or the pigeons, or by soiling the bedding with its filth because it is ill-mannered, since some cats are ill-mannered and cause harm and soil the bedding, while others do not, and do not cause harm except in specific places far from the harm of people.
The conclusion is: if it harms and its harm cannot be repelled except by killing, then kill it. And if its harm can be repelled without killing, by taking it and throwing it far from your house, or by warning it, because it is feared that it may be one of the jinn who take the form of cats, warn it for three days and caution it. If it returns, there is no harm in killing it.
The conclusion is: one should not be hasty in matters, and should be careful. If it is established that it is harmful, and its harm cannot be repelled except by killing, then kill it. And if its harm can be repelled by other means, such as warning it and alerting it, perhaps it will repent, if it is feared that it is, meaning, a jinn taking the form of a cat. And if it is also possible to carry it to a distant place and throw it far away, and not kill it, then that is safer and better. Yes.
A farmer from al-Suwayd, from the village of al-Kawz, says: I intended to slaughter a harmful cat, but I discovered that it was not the harmful one. What is the ruling of the Shari'ah regarding me, may Allah have mercy on you?
Answer:
If you killed it because you believed it was harmful, for example, by taking the food of the chickens or pigeons, or by soiling the bedding, and this was your belief, then you owe nothing if it becomes clear to you that you were mistaken in your belief.
As for if it is not harmful, it is not permissible for you to kill it; rather, it is obligatory for you to refrain from killing it, because it is one of the roaming animals. You must treat it well with food and drink, and whatever Allah has made easy, and you must not kill it, nor hit it either.
However, if it harms you in the food of the chickens, for example, or the pigeons, or by soiling the bedding with its filth because it is ill-mannered, since some cats are ill-mannered and cause harm and soil the bedding, while others do not, and do not cause harm except in specific places far from the harm of people.
The conclusion is: if it harms and its harm cannot be repelled except by killing, then kill it. And if its harm can be repelled without killing, by taking it and throwing it far from your house, or by warning it, because it is feared that it may be one of the jinn who take the form of cats, warn it for three days and caution it. If it returns, there is no harm in killing it.
The conclusion is: one should not be hasty in matters, and should be careful. If it is established that it is harmful, and its harm cannot be repelled except by killing, then kill it. And if its harm can be repelled by other means, such as warning it and alerting it, perhaps it will repent, if it is feared that it is, meaning, a jinn taking the form of a cat. And if it is also possible to carry it to a distant place and throw it far away, and not kill it, then that is safer and better. Yes.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.